Saturday event offers perspective

July 19, 2012

Tri-State Area residents will have the chance Saturday to learn about an important period of history directly from those who experienced it.

On Saturday, the Weirton Area Museum and Cultural Center will host an Ice Cream Social with Rosie the Riveter, where the stories of area women who worked in mills and other industrial businesses during World War II will be shared.

We hope our residents take advantage of this program, and encourage as many as possible to attend. Known collectively as Rosie the Riveters, these women stepped up to keep local industry running when men were overseas fighting in World War II.

They performed the same jobs their male counterparts had for years, and continued to manufacture steel, ammunition and many other products needed throughout the nation and around the world.

Many of these women are set to be in attendance Saturday from noon to 2 p.m., and it will most definitely be a great experience for anyone who is interested in learning about the Ohio Valley, or the nation, during the World War II era.

Museum officials have been working in recent weeks to collect and archive stories of many of these hardworking women. Eventually, they hope to be able to have copies of these stories available for the public.

This way, area residents will be able to read about their thoughts and experiences for years to come. We are quickly losing many of those who lived during this time in history, and it is important for their stories to be preserved.

Stop by the museum Saturday, learn from these women and see more of the historical artifacts that are available to our community.